Locked in a potentially tight reelection race and facing criticism over the grid’s 2021 collapse, the governor is exerting unprecedented influence over what the state grid operator shares with the public — and who will be its next CEO.
Gov. Greg Abbott speaks about preparations for a winter storm at a press conference on Feb. 1, nearly one year after the deadly 2021 winter storm that left millions of Texans without power for days., our daily newsletter that keeps readers up to speed on the most essential Texas news.
The board of directors, installed by a group of three people who are appointed by the governor, lieutenant governor and House speaker, and a contracted search firm have presented CEO candidates to Abbott for final say, according to three sources who spoke to the Tribune on the condition of anonymity to discuss the sensitive issues.
By the time Jones took over ERCOT two months after the catastrophe, Abbott’s office had begun dictating what — and whether — information about the power grid was released to the public by ERCOT, an unprecedented move by a Texas governor, according to current and former energy company directors, power grid employees, longtime energy analysts and consultants who spoke to The Texas Tribune.
“The governor is not just reviewing and editing [ERCOT’s public statements]. He’s telling ERCOT whether or not they can release grid information at all,” said a former senior ERCOT employee who spoke candidly about the matter on the condition of anonymity. The source said “it means information is potentially not getting where it needs to go, and that means Texans aren’t hearing what they need to hear.
“The National Weather Service is on Twitter every day or in the newspaper or on Facebook — there are a thousand ways to reach people where they are,” said Alison Silverstein, a former senior adviser at the Public Utility Commission of Texas, which regulates ERCOT. “The point is to provide so much information that people stop thinking you’re hiding stuff and they stop looking behind every lamp post and stop being suspicious about what you’re not telling them.
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